1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of optical semiconductor devices, and more particularly to an optical semiconductor device having a structure of photosensitive diodes.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 6,455,836 discloses a photosensitive semiconductor device that comprises, on top of a base layer, an intermediate layer made of a photosensitive material, projecting lower electrodes in this layer and an upper layer that includes an upper electrode. A lateral well passes through the intermediate layer and the upper layer. The base layer includes connection means that are connected selectively to the lower electrodes and comprise connection pads placed in the bottom of the aforementioned well. A local layer made of an electrically-conductive non-transparent material covers some of the diodes in order to form an optical barrier and extends along the sidewalls and in the bottom of the well so as to electrically connect the upper electrode to the electrical connection pads. Such an arrangement is not suitable for implementation on standard fabrication machines, especially planarization machines, and requires a tricky final operation to produce the local layer.
Accordingly, there exists a need for overcoming the disadvantages of the prior art as discussed above.